JUNE 2018www.APSSinc.org

Newsletter

VOLUME 39, NUMBER 9 Formerly New York Sheet Music Society

An Abundance of Talent: Sandi Durell’s 14th AnnualSongwriter Series

By Jerry OsterbergThere are many ways of measuring a

song of quality, one possessing theattributes of going the distance. Thosewhose lives have paralleled the arrival oftunes making up the AmericanSongbook, together with youngerkeepers of the flame, willagree, or agree to disagree,over the songs whichpopulate their personallists. With a vast canon tochoose from, there’salways something foreveryone.

One of mybenchmarks is thepresence of a memorableline which seems to reflectthe heart of the matter, ifnot the profound essenceof it. Lyrics such as “Ourlove is as deep as the sea,”“And if I ever lost you,how long would I cry?”and “You will not know a day I do notlove you,” certainly work for me. But, sodo “Can’t live my life without you,” “Iwas waiting for you to bring me down toearth,” and “Even in darkness, loveshines.” The first three of these werewritten by Howard Dietz, Irving Berlin,and Martin Charnin, respectively. Therest were by Allan Harris, Sam Carner,and Aziza Miller, some of themagnificently talented musiciansrecruited by Sandi Durell for the Mayprogram.

Sam Carner and Derek Gregor havereceived both the Richard Rodgers andJohn Wallowich Awards, the KlebanPrize, and were nominated for elevenMAC awards for their songs. Troy Iwataperformed “Down to Earth,” as a love-

seeking cupid, more than ready toforsake his heavenly existence for theright girl; Hanna Berggren sang “AFractured Fairy Tale,” in which hercharacter wonders where the princes arehiding and how she might land one; Troy

and Hanna performed a delightful duet,as both sides of a first date in whichexpectations ranged from immediatesuccess to instant disaster.

Douglas J. Cohen is a recipient ofFred Ebb and Richard Rodgers Awardsand a Jonathan Larson Grant, and creatorof numerous musicals, including No Wayto Treat a Lady, The Gig, Children’sLetters to God, A Charles DickensChristmas (written with Tom Toce), andthe upcoming off-Broadway debut of TheEvolution of Mann. His songs were sungby Jillian Louis, who has appeared in ItShoulda Been You, Soul Doctor, and willbe appearing in an upcoming productionof Steel Magnolias, and JesseManocherian, whose credits include ANew Brain, Marry Me a Little, and The

Baker’s Wife. Allan Harris arrived on stage very

much self-contained, not only because ofhis relaxed performance style, butbecause he’s virtually a one-man band:vocalist/guitarist/bandleader/composer.

Alan has received theDownbeat Critics Awardamong many others,recorded ten albums, andhas written the book,music and lyrics for CrossThat River, which had asuccessful run last year inNYC and is booked atvarious regional theatersaround the country. Heperformed two songs fromthe show for APSS. WhileNat King Cole’s influenceis certainly reflected inAllan’s voice, it could beargued that he might alsobe channeling Brook

Benton. Barry Kleinbort has earned the

Edward Kleban Foundation Award forLyric Writing, the Second Stage MusicalWriters Award, two Back Stage Bistroand eleven MAC awards. Barry haswritten eight musicals, including 13Things About Ed Carpolotti (based on aplay by Jeffrey Hatcher). Starring PennyFuller, it recently played in LA aftersuccessful runs off-Broadway andregionally. Ms. Fuller performed “OneMore Spring” from 13 Things… Barryreserved “Puhhh” for himself, a funnymusical send-up of Parisian manners,from the bi-lingual revue(Metropolita(i)n) about the differencesbetween Paris and New York. The last

Continued on page 3

Photo by Rose Billings

(from top left) Jonathan Stewart, Aziza Miller, Barry Kleinbort(middle l.) Douglas Cohen, Jillian Louis, Brad Ross, Derek Gregor, Annika Boras.

(bottom row) Jesse Manocherian, Sandi Durell, Troy Awata

What an amazing 2017-2018 season we have had this year!Remember to visit our website: www.APSSinc.org to viewour archives and read past Newsletters. This way you can relive eachand every wonderful program we have presented for over three

decades. My gratitude to the team members who produce our valuable Newsletter monthafter month, year after year. Thanks to Editor Jerry Osterberg, Associate EditorJoan Adams, writer/contributor Marilyn Lester, and Glen Charlow who designs and putsit all together (along with his myriad other duties - Webmaster, Treasurer, Membership,etc.)

Many thanks to Board Member Sandi Durell for producing the 14th Edition of hervery popular annual Songwriter Series! Sandi has a gift for discovering talent, and theincredible composers and performers she presented were, as always, top notch. You canread all about the Program in this Newsletter, which is our last issue until we begin ourseason in the Fall.

This season, we added a very successful “Pre-Show” which featured young, talentedperformers, proving that there are up-and-coming singers who love and appreciate thesongs of the American Songbook and many genres of good music. Please don’t forgetour “Member Exchange Table,” where you can find treasures like sheet music,playbills, books, CD’s and other memorabilia for FREE! So when doing your nextSpring cleaning, instead of throwing things away, donate your items to APSS. It’s agood feeling to find a home for your treasures with people who appreciate them.

We are working on the programs for the next season and, as always, we will havean interesting and exciting line-up for you to enjoy.

So, please remember to rejoin and encourage your friends and family to do the same.In order to keep our membership fees low, we need to have a fund-raising event, andwould appreciate any feedback from our members on what you would like. Also, youcan always join as one of our “Angels” and make anadditional contribution to the good works of ourAmerican Popular Song Society.

Wishing you all a healthy and happy summer.Best,

PAGE 2 AMERICAN POPULAR SONG SOCIETY JUNE, 2018

President’s Message...Linda Amiel Burns, President

Linda

President:Linda Amiel Burns

Vice Presidents:Joan AdamsSandi Durell

Treasurer & Membership:Glen Charlow

Secretary:Marilyn Lester

Board Of Directors:Elliott AmesBill Boggs

Glen CharlowSandi DurellWill FriedwaldMichael LavineMarilyn LesterSandy MarroneJerry OsterbergJudy StewartTom Toce

Membership Mailing Address:American Popular Song Society

P.O. Box 5856Pikesville, MD 21282

info@APSSinc.org(212) 315-3500 (Linda A. Burns)

American PopularSong Society

MEETING LOCATION: Local 802 – Musicians’ Hall322 West 48th Street. Program: 1:45 – 3:30PM.Come early to look thru Sheet Music & CD’s & stuff, all FREE.

N E W S L E T T E REditor/Publisher: Jerry Osterberg

osterbergg@aol.comContributing Editor: Marilyn Lester

mj@mjlester.comAssociate Editor: Joan Adams

joan.adams@corcoran.comGraphic Designer: Glen Charlow

info@APSSinc.org

Linda Amiel Burns and Sandi Durell

piece was from a production in progress– Travels in Vermeer,” based on MichaelWhite’s memoir. Jonathan Stewartperformed “Stillness.” David Gainesaccompanied the singers.

Aziza Miller is yet another multi-dimensional musician: composer/song-writer/vocalist/educator and self-confessed “splinger.” She describedsplinging as the practice of half singingand half speaking in her delivery of atune, not surprising given her primarybackground is as a musical director, mostnotably for Natalie Cole. In this instance,Aziza played the keyboard, backed by

her masterful percussionistRoland Guerrero (hascollaborated with WyntonMarsalis and ArturoO’Farrill), performing hernewest song “This ThingCalled Love,” and “HisEyez,” a good example ofwhat splinging sounds like.

Brad Ross, a winner ofthe Richard Rodgers Award, has threepublished musicals to his credit. TheKennedy Center commissioned andpremiered Brad’s musical The Tales ofCustard the Dragon, basedon the books of OgdenNash. His symphonic AFamily for Baby Grand

has beenr e co rdedby theRochester

Philharmonic andperformed by theNational Symphony, thePhiladelphia Orchestra,and more than twentyorchestras nationwide.For this program his song“Now” (lyrics by JoeKeenan) was presentedby Christopher Michaels,“Remember Facts”(lyrics by Joe Keenan)was sung by AnnikaBoras, and “How Sad NoOne Waltzes Anymore”(lyrics by EllenGreenfield), performedby Jeanne Lehman. Ms.Lehman has appeared onBroadway in Beauty andthe Beast, The Sound ofMusic, and Irene. As aconcert soloist, she’sheadlined at CarnegieHall, the Library ofCongress, and theHollywood Bowl. She’salso toured with CarolChanning in Hello,Dolly!

Corinna Sowers-Adler has been a TonyAward nominee forExcellence in TheaterEducation four times. Sheis also a voice teacher andfounding Artistic Directorof NiCori Studios,training young singers inthe genre of the great

American Songbook. Ms. Sowers-Adlerhas performed her solo cabaret act atnumerous NYC cabaret venues, inaddition to three appearances at the

Cabaret Convention. Two of her voicestudents, Elizabeth Nucci, a fifteen-year-old sophomore, and Kevin W. Bergen,currently a college theater student,presented “Ice Cream” (aka “Vanilla IceCream”), written by Jerry Bock andSheldon Harnick, and “In the Still of theNight” (Cole Porter), respectively. Bothperformers have an impressive resumewhich includes cabaret and musicaltheater. Tracy Stark, hardly a stranger toAPSS, is a pianist/arranger/conduc-tor/singer-songwriter, and 10-time MACAward winner in the categories of MusicDirector, Song of the Year, and Piano BarEntertainer, and a Bistro Award recipientfor Musical Direction. If you believe thatyou have sighted Tracy here, there, andeverywhere, it’s probably not an illusion.With a calendar of 75-100 differentshows per year, working with artists ofall different genres, from rock to jazz toBroadway, she stays quite busy.

Ms. Stark acted as the MusicalDirector for most of the day’s program.

This writer finds it amazing thatSandi Durell can manage to assemble anentire program of such diverse talent yearafter year. Every one of the songwriters

JUNE, 2018 AMERICAN POPULAR SONG SOCIETY PAGE 3

Songwriter Series...Continued from page 1

Continued on page 6

Jesse Manocherian

Annika Boras

Derek GregorJonathan Stewart

Jeanne Lehman

Alan Harris

Brad Ross

Christopher Michaels

Elizabeth Nicci Kevin W. Bergen

Corinna Sowers Adler

The Tin Pan Alley writers were kept busy on Broadway (whygive up a sure thing?). The breakthrough of talking pictureswas a lure for a great many of the hit-makers of the day to headwest. Hollywood called and the likes of Whiting, Romberg,Friml, Youmans, Kern and Warren answered, with many moreto follow.

Porter, whonever reallydeveloped a taste forwriting for film, hadbegun his career justbefore Americaentered World War1, with a song in therevue, Hands Up in1915, and his first Broadway production in 1916, See AmericaFirst – a flop, closing after two weeks. In 1917, with the USnow in WWI, Porter moved to Paris to join the war effort,working with the Duryea Relief organization.

After the war, between Porter’s own personal wealth andthe strength of the US dollar, he was able to maintain a luxuryapartment and entertain lavishly. His parties were notoriousand scandalous, including sexual openness and recreationaldrugs. It was in Paris that Porter met and married Linda LeeThomas in 1919. Under her influence, he enrolled in theSchola Cantorum where he studied orchestration andcounterpoint with Vincent d’Indy, while also writing his hit,“Old-Fashioned Garden” and contributing songs to the musical

A Night Out. In 1923 Porter received an

inheritance, and with this added wealth,began spending time renting palaces inVenice. Yet he continued his connection toParis, also writing songs for shows in theUS and Britain. But Porter was notsatisfied with the cool reception his workoften received. In the mid 1920s heconsidered giving up songwritingaltogether, but he continued to composesongs for friends, performing them at

private parties. In 1928, he was back on Broadway, with hisfirst hit, Paris. He was now off and running, with successes inParis, London and New York. His last Broadway show of the1920s was the Gallic-inspired Fifty Million Frenchman,mounted in 1929.

But by 1929, the party in Paris was coming to an end. TheGreat Depression had struck, making its way across theAtlantic to Europe within a little over a year. With AdolphHitler coming to power in the 1930s and with some realizingthere would be a threat of war, the expats came home. TheParisian fling was over. The curtain came down – finis.

Paris, that gay City of Lights, was dealt a terrible blow inWorld War l – the Great War, the War to End All Wars. In 1918there was jubilation and relief for the end of the conflict, butat the same time the French government was plunged into debtand Parisians struggled with rampant inflation. By 1921, theeconomy had begun to recover, thanks to several initiatives,but the franc was still devalued, and against the US dollar, thismeant Americans in Paris had significant spending power.

At war’s end in the United States, a generation was comingof age to findthat societywas shifting toa new sense ofvalues. UnderP r e s i d e n tWarren G.Harding, withhis “back ton o r m a l c y ”policy, many

creatives felt alienated by the mood of materialism and narrow,provincial thinking. Many fled to Paris where the living waseconomically feasible and the atmosphere alive withpossibility. These expats were termed the “lost generation,” aname that applied to the literary set mainly, but extended to allof those who’d been attracted to what Paris had to offer. It wasa phrase coined by Gertrude Stein and made famous by ErnestHemingway in his writing. Paris during the 1920s was excitingand alive. It was the Jazz Age, the RoaringTwenties, and in France, Les AnnéesFolles, “the Crazy Years.”

The number of notables across thespectrum of the arts comprised, asHemingway termed it, “a moveable feast.”The center of activity was inMontparnasse, where many artisticcolonies had sprung up. Writers wererepresented by the likes of Hemingwayand the Fitzgeralds, as well as James Joyceand W.B.Yeats from Ireland. Visual artistsabounded and included Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst, AmedeoMogdigliani, Alexander Calder and Salvador Dali, to name afew. Among the composers were a gaggle of classicists, manyfrom around the world, including Erik Satie, Igor Stravinsky,Béla Bartók, Manuel de Falla, Sergei Prokofiev, andAmericans Aaron Copeland, George Gershwin and ColePorter.

In truth, among the artists who came to the Parisian scene,popular songwriters were in short supply. The reason, in part,being the call of another epicenter of creativity – Hollywood.In the post WWl years, cinema was a rapidly growing art form.

PAGE 4 AMERICAN POPULAR SONG SOCIETY JUNE, 2018

Cole Porter, Paris and the Lost GenerationBy Marilyn Lester

Alice B. Toklas, Gertrude Stein, Paris 1920s

Cole, Linda Lee Thomas, Paris 1920s

1920s Cafe Favorite of American Expats

Linda Amiel Burns, APSS President, is celebrating four decades ofThe Singing Experience. Several APSS members have taken thisworkshop, some more than once. For those of us who have, we canassure you that you’ll feel like a pro by the night of the performance.Although many students have never sung in public before, thesupportive environment has prepared them well for their debut. CallLinda at 212-315-3500 to sign up. The Singing Experience Cable TVshow continues on MNN Time Warner: Channel 56 or RCN: Channel111. The program broadcasts are every Sunday at 5:00 PM. Youcan also see your fellow NYSMS members on YouTube at any time. Linda is close to completing the Spring edition of The SingingExperience. Performance for Life is a Song will take place on June 13at the Triad @ 7:30 PM. Contact Linda for additional information at212-315-3500 or linda@singingexperience.com.

Midday Jazz Midtown continues Wednesdays (1:00 PM to 2:00 PM)at Saint Peter’s Church (East 54 Street (entrance) @ Lexington Ave),NYC, Hosted by Ronny Whyte. Programs: June 6, Cynthia Sayer –banjo & vocals, Adrian Cunningham – clarinet & sax, Mike Weatherly– string bass & vocals; June 13, Stephen Richman – HarmonieEnsemble NY, Big Bands play the classics – Bach, Ravel, Verdi &more as played by the Miller, Dorsey, and Goodman bands; June 20,Eric Comstock – pianist/singer, Barbara Fasano – singer; June 27,David Chamberlain’s Band of Bones. Suggested donation: $10.Parking: Icon Parking, East 51 St, between Third and Lexington Ave.$15 including tax for five hours with validation@Saint Peter’sReception Desk. www.ronnywhyte.comwww.saintpeters.org/jazz/midtownjazz.htm.

Board member Marilyn Lester is now the Executive Director of thenew nonprofit American Songbook Association (an outgrowth of theCabaret Scenes foundation). The mission is publishing the magazine,bringing the music into the schools and providing quality, low-costperformances to senior citizens, students and all who love songbookmusic. Please check out www.americansongbookassociation.org

JUNE, 2018 AMERICAN POPULAR SONG SOCIETY PAGE 5

Member News...

Send Member News to Osterbergg@aol.com no later than the 15th of each month for the next issue.

If you have any member news, or other items you would like to haveconsidered for this newsletter, please send it by e-mail to the co-editor, Jerry Osterbergg: osterbergg@AOL.com. It will be subject toediting, depending on size and content, and please remember thatwe try to go to press two weeks before each monthly meeting. Weoften get very good items that get to us after the newsletter has beenprinted and mailed.

Steve Ross returns to Birdland with Travels With My Piano onMonday, June 4 @ 7:00 PM. Steve would love to have you along forthe journey.

APSS Board member Tom Toce has recorded a studio version of hissuccessful MAC Award nominated cabaret show Songwriter in theHouse at the Metropolitan Room last year. The recently released CDis different than Tom’s earlier album. It features his singer-songwritersongs and his vocals throughout. Backing Tom are Jon Burr - bass,Sean Harkness - guitar, Justin McEllroy & Peter Millrose - vocals. TheCD is available on CD Baby. https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/tomtoce.

Carol J. Binkowski’s new book, Opening Carnegie Hall: The Creationand First Performances of America’s Premier Concert Stage was justpublished by McFarland & Co. www.caroljbinkowski.com.

Hilary Kole’s newest CD: The Judy Garland Project (Miranda Music)is now on-sale. The remarkable performer conjures the spirit andbeauty of Judy Garland in stunning arrangements of songs madefamous by the legendary singer, including The Trolley Song, The ManThat Got Away, Over the Rainbow.

Do you seek an elusive song? If you do, write APSS Board memberSandy Marrone @ smusandy@aol.com or call 856-829-6104. Youcan also visit Sandy in New Jersey to see thousands and thousandsof sheets of music, most of which can be yours very reasonably. Sheis a marvelous resource and a super-great lady! Having heard fromonly a few of our members over the past year or so, Sandy wants toremind you that she’s still at it, adding to her collection every day, andalways willing to part with sheet music at especially fair prices for us.Sheet music was the reason we were founded thirty plus years ago,after all, and she’s only a phone call or e-mail away. Sandy continuesto be willing to offer free appraisals with no expectation of having rightof first refusal and can provide unbiased advice as to how and whereto sell music. It’s not a secret, pass it on please.

Looking Beyond Today: Having recently witnessed theexceptional program produced by Sandi Durell, one is left witha logical question: “Where do we go from here?” That is, whathappens between now and next Spring. In addition to giving overa session of every season to the Songwriter Series, we’veintroduced our members to young performers who have mostlypresented tunes from the American Songbook. This is awonderful thing, although it could be another opportunity toexpose the membership to new material as does the SongwriterSeries. We encourage you to patronize these hard-workingartists, the songwriters and the singers. Go to their shows andreport back. By doing so, you’ll be expressing appreciation byyour presence, and expanding your appetite for good music,irrespective of the century it emanates from. If APSS is going tocontinue to prosper and grow, we’ll need to keep looking forward.

P.O. Box 5856 • PIKESVILLE, MD 21282

Did you know every issue of this newsletteris in COLOR online at www.APSSinc.org

American PopularSong Society

February 10, 2018Michael Lavine & Tom Toce

The contemporary music of Disney AnimationMarch 10, 2018

(Cabaret Month) Linda Burns,performance by Sidney Myer

April 14, 2018(Jazz Appreciation Month) Marilyn Lester

New directions in JazzMay 12, 2018

Sandi Durell, Songwriter ShowcaseJune 9, 2018

Richard Skipper Celebrates Cabaret and ColeA celebration of Cole Porter on his BirthdayNE

XT

June 9, 2018

“Richard Skipper Celebrates Cabaret and Cole Porter”Richard Skipper returns to the American Popular Song Society for thefinal show of the 2017-2018 season with an afternoon devoted to theinfluence that Cole Porter has had in the cabaret community. Richardwill be joined by Sally Darling, Jeff Harnar, Todd Murray, KarenOberlin, Leslie Orofino, AND Steve Ross. All under the musicaldirection of Daryl Kojak. This falls on the 127th anniversary of ColePorter's birth! Opening the show is newcomer Hannah Jane Peterson.

Produced by Richard Skipper

Barbara Cook

and singers brought somethingunique to the audience. The materialmight not have been the classics ofthe “Great American Songbook,” butall of it was entertaining, andsuggests that we’re in the midst of afertile period of musical creativity.Although popular music diverged

along several different paths duringthe second-half of the last century,some of the strands didn’t stray far.Music, such as we heard on May 12,represents nothing less than thenatural evolution of musical theater,and it’s all ours. Thanks Sandi forhelping us to recognize there are stillgood songs being written. All weneed to do is to find and embracethem, and, above all, encourage theartists.

Songwriter Series...Continued from page 3